Yarmouth school board chairman: Military recruiter claims 'troubling and untrue'

Southern Maine school officials said Gov. LePage is blaming them for something that is simply not true.

Last week, a bill created by LePage that would give uniformed military recruiters unlimited access to secondary schools failed in the Maine House of Representatives. A recruiter had told the department of education that seven southern Maine schools were giving them minimal access.

Command Sgt. Maj. Richard Hannibal wrote a letter to the Department of Education in May saying recruiters have “minimal access and ineffective visits.” His spokesman said the military hopes to have the problems addressed.

The governor did just that, handwriting 45 letters to legislators who have voted against his bill. In his weekly address, LePage said the failed bill was “one of the most appalling moves of the session.”

“One Democrat even said he’s ‘more inclined to believe our superintendents than a military recruiter.’ I bet my life on the word of a recruiter over a superintendent any day of the week and twice on Sunday,” LePage said.

The seven schools in question are Kennebunk, Noble, Oak Hill, Wells, York, Gorham and Yarmouth. The governor also said Portland and Yarmouth have denied uniformed recruiters from stepping on campus.

Yarmouth’s School Board chairman said that is a lie.

“What’s troubling to us in Yarmouth is our school was singled out and singled out wrongly,” said David Ray, the chairman of the Yarmouth School Board. “So, I’d like everyone to know what the governor said about Yarmouth is not accurate.”

Ray and Kennebunk Superintendent Andrew Dolloff said they are willing to reach out to the governor or recruiters to figure out how these claims started in the first place.

“We’d invite the governor or his spokesperson to come on down and see how we handle military recruiters in our schools and they would see that they just got it wrong,” Ray said.

“What we’re going to do is actually reach out to the recruiters tomorrow and see if we can set up a meeting and make sure we’re addressing their concerns,” Dolloff said.

It’s already a federal mandate to allow recruiters unlimited access to secondary schools, but LePage also said he encourages Mainers to find out where their politicians stand on the issue because “this will not be the last time this bill is introduced.”

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